Tempo device for mechanical musical instruments.



No. 876,080. PATENTED JAN. 7, 1908.

J. OGONNOR. TEMPO DEVICE FOR MECHANICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

APPLICATION FILED PEB.15,1904.

Inv antar- James 0 00nno7- UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES OCONNOR, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

TEMPO DEVICE FOR MECHANICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tempo Devicesfor Mechanical Musical Instruments, of which the following is a full,clear, and exact specification.

Thiainvention relates to improved devices cal instruments.

for varying and controlling the time or tempo of the music produced by mechanical musi-' These devices are herein shown and described as being adapted'to a well-known class of machines, the note' sounding devices of which are controlled b ahlongitudinally traveling perforated music s eet.

Figure 1 is a plan view and Fig. 2 is an end view in section takenon the line 22 of Fi 1, showing this invention applied to a we known type of music sheet apparatus. Fi s. 3 and 4 are plan views in section taken on t e line 34 of Fig. 2, showing the controlling valve in two extreme posltions, being entirely closed Fig. 3, and entirely open in Fig. 4. Fig. 5 is aplan view of a fragment of amusic sheet showing a modified way of applying the tempo indicating marks upon the music sheet. I

Those instruments of this class which are provided with tempo re ulatin devices to I forth betweenthe music sheet and the graduated scale, theoperations being first to observe each succeeding letter or numeral upon the music sheet, and then to move the lever to a position approximately determined by the scale. The mental operations, and the repeated shifting of the. eyes between the sheet and thescale, distracttheoperators attention to an undue extent from the other functions of the instrumentand from. the expression marks and other indications now commonly employed upon music sheets.

In the present invention. the variations in time are indicated upon the music sheet, in accordance with the composers score, or inaccordance with the musical taste of the ar- Specification' of Letters Patent.

Application filed Februarv 15, 1904. Serial No. 193.710-

' air t rough the motor.

Patented J an. 7, 1908.

ranger, by numerals which by their values and the sidewise variations oftheir positions serve as a guide for the movements of thelever, which is adapted b its swinging movement to vary the time o the instrument, and is provided with an index pointer which overlies the music sheet, the lever being moved by the operator in substantial coinof the numerals with a series of ducts 42. which communicate by means of tubes .43 with the respective note sounding devices of the machine. The aforesaid driving mech'anism for the music sheet is usually propelled by a motor oper-' ated either by air'under pressure, or by atmos heric pressure induced 'by exhausting the is conveyed to, or the exhausted air is .drawn from the motor through a supply pi e 45, in

which is placed a valve 46, prefera ly consisting of an ordinary plug cock having the opening 47, which as the valve is turned, regulates the amountof air passing through, and thus controls the rapidity of operation of the aforesaid motor for the sheet driving mechanism.

The valve is provided with'a lever 49 having an index or pointer 21., which extends over the music sheet and is provided with a knob or finger piece 37 placed in a position convenient .to the hand of the operator. The end 22 of the index is referably extendedto the tracker bar, so t at th'e'tem 0 guide numerals may be placed upon t e sheet among the note perforations.

The guide' numerals are printed or otherwise placed u on the music sheet, andare located thereon in such relation to each other that when the oint 22 ofthe indicator is over The compressed air any one o them, the small pointer 35 provided at the outer end of the lever 49 stands .over thecorresponding numeral in the fixed The raduations are ,marked on a plate 50 which is suitably seaduated are 36.

cured to the frame of the machine, and carries near its ends stop pins 29 which limit the swing of the lever 49 in both directions.

The guide numerals the note sheet thus a lines 24 and 25; and the range of deviation of the tempo' numerals to indicate the extreme variations of speed in Fig. 1, indicative of the travel of the point 22 of the index required to produce those variations. WVhen the pointer or index is not thus extended into, substantial coincidence with the position of the tracker bar ducts, a corresponding allowance must be made in the width of the range covered by.

the guide numerals and also in the position in which the latter are placed longitudinally of the sheet, "relative to the tracker bar erfora'tions. The numerals must also be aid out with proper-reference to the character of the valve employed, and to the form of the opening47 therethrough, since variations in the form or kind of valve employed will require corresponding variations in the amplitude ofthe movementof the lever 49, and inthe relations of different parts of that movement, all of which are readily understood or easily determined by trial.

In order that the index 21 may readily be swung out of the way to permit the removal and replacing of the music rolls, it is preferably ivoted u on the lever at 28. By swinging t e indexibrward the rolls'-are'made accessible. When the variations of the tempo are frequent, the numerals will appear so near each other longitudinally of the sheet that the operator will have no difficulty in keeping the end 22 of the pointer in the propler positions over'the unmarked portions of t e sheet between the numerals. W'hen, however, the music is to be played for any length of time at any unvarymg tempo, the numeral at the beginning of such a passage may be underscored orfifotherwise'i marked 1 thus instructing the operator to keep to that tempo till the appearance of .the same nu- (Fig. 1,) until the Most instruments of this class are operated -v-meral unmarked notifies him of a coming change, this unmarked numeral being preferwhen its position isin such proxlmity to the numeral which follows, it as to cause the o erator no appreciable ably employed only Inental'effort in con orming to the change. For example, the index may be retained in the position indicated by the underscored 10 plain 10 is-re'aclied.

by a treadlc connected with a s'ystemof bellows, by means of which a partial vacuum is produced for the working of the note soundfrom nothing up to full. speed is indicated by the length of the are 26 produced for operating the motor of the sheet driving mechanism. Insome of these .machines the desiredvariations in loudness i or softness of the music is obtained by working the treadle faster orslower, the louder tones being produced by. the rapid working While the softer tones are produced byslower working. But these changes in the rapidity of the treadle movements usually also afiect since the also accelerate or diminish the speed'of t e motorfor the sheet driving mechanism unless the latter is provided with regulating devices which may be manipulated so as to compensate for'the changes inspeed of the pum ing operations. An such'varia -tion of t e pressure due to .cianges in the pumpin speed for obtaining louder and softer effects s out the tempo guide numerals of,the resent inventipn, since it may often hap en t rat the louder portions of the music shou d not be accelerated in time; and should sometimes be played in slower time. Conversely, it may often happen that the soft portions of the music should be. played in regular time, or in quicker time, all, of which factors should be takeninto account in establishing the range and position of the tempo guide numerals. The lever49 serves also as a convenient means for starting and stopping the sheet driving mechanism, independently of the treadle'or other means employed for working the pumps. By swinging the lever 49 to or past the position of the line 24, so as to move the valve to the position shown in Fig. 3, the motor is at once stopped, and is as readily started again by movingthe lever towards the position of the line 25.

Although the guide symbols on the music sheet are preferably the ordinary arabic numerals, it is evident that any other class of symbols, whose sequence is Well-known, such as Romannumerals or theletters of the alphabet may be used with equal facility. In Fig. 5 is shown a fragment of a music sheet 32 thus marked with letters instead of numerals.

I claim as my invention 1. The combination with meansfor'regu lating the s ed of sheet driving mechanism, of a music siizet rovided with sequence symbols extending in a general direction of the length' of the sheet, but'deviating from side to side to indicate the required variations of the speed, regulating means, the symbols be- -ing employed in their sequential order to indicate variations in tempo, the unvarying portions being indicated by a repetition of the same symbol.

4 2. The combination with means for regulating the s eed ofsheet driving mechanism, of a music 3 eet provided with sequence symbols extending in the general direction of the ould be taken into account in laying ing devices; and the vacuumor pressure is to some extent the time of the music played,

length of the sheet but deviating from side to side to indicate the required variations of v the speed regulating means, the symbols being employedin their sequential order for the varying ortions and each unvarying portion being in icated by a repetition, in the same position relative 'to the edges of the sheet, of

the symbol standing at the beginning of that unvar ing portion;

' 3. he coinblnationwlth music sheetdnving mechanism, of a graduated tempo lndex,

a pivotal]? mounted tempo lever extending y-into cooperation with the said,

4; The combination with. music sheet driving mechanism, of a graduated tempo index,

a pivotally mounted tempo lever, cooperating with the said indexfand a pointer extending over the music sheet and swinging upon an arc of smaller radius than that of the index inged upon the lever to enable it'to be swung clear of the music p aper.-v

portion of the lever, the-said pointer being In testimony whereof, I have signed my name -to this specification in the presence of two subsorrbing witnesses.

I JAMES OCONNOR- ;Witnesses Geo. D. ANDREWs, P. Wns'rERvELT. 

